Date-rape drug at center of Cornell sex assault allegations can leave victims unaware of surroundings

An investigation into an alleged gang rape at a Cornell University fraternity has thrust the illicit use of ketamine into the spotlight, calling attention to the powerful anesthetic’s use on college campuses as a date-rape drug.

The former Cornell student testified before the university’s hearing panel that ketamine made her feel "like her lights were on but no one was home," describing a state of "vague consciousness."

During an Oct. 23 appearance on "Fox & Friends," Dr. Stephanie Widmer, a Fox News contributor and addiction specialist in New York, warned that the drug’s physiological effects can leave people unable to defend themselves or understand their environment.

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"When you say the lights are on, but nobody’s home, that’s a pretty good way to describe it," Widmer said. "You can essentially have no awareness of your surroundings."

Ketamine affects NMDA receptors in the brain and can alter vital signs, according to the doctor.

"It can cause profound sedation, and it can cause dissociation, which is essentially the sensation of your brain not really being attached to your body," she said.

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While ketamine has legitimate medical uses — it was used as a battlefield anesthetic during the Vietnam War and remains FDA-approved for general anesthesia — the drug is also abused recreationally at parties, raves and nightclubs.

The Drug Enforcement Administration classifies ketamine as a Schedule III controlled substance and identifies it, alongside Rohypnol and GHB, as a drug that can be used to facilitate sexual assault. The agency says these substances can cause sedation, confusion and memory loss, leaving victims vulnerable.

When asked why ketamine falls into the category of date-rape drugs, Widmer said it can affect both cognitive function and physical awareness.

"There are a number of date-rape drugs that are out there, and ketamine does fall into that category because of what it can do to your sensorium," she added.

Widmer also warned about mixing ketamine with alcohol or other substances, which can compound the drugs’ effects and increase the risk of dangerous sedation and respiratory depression.

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"They’re combining them with other substances, they’re combining them with alcohol, and that can compound the effects of these drugs," she said. "It can cause really profound sedation. It can be incredibly dangerous."

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Widmer said her biggest concern is how parents discuss the dangers of drugs with their children, especially before sending them off to college.

"Everybody knows to say drugs are bad and not to do drugs, and you never know what you’re getting, but really understanding what some of these drugs can do is really important... that they’re not benign and that they can cause dissociation."

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Weight-loss drug could help address nighttime sleep disruptions for millions

An experimental obesity drug significantly reduced breathing interruptions and other symptoms of obstructive sleep disorder in two clinical trials, according to new research published in The New England Journal of Medicine.

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) affects more than 50 million Americans, and about 80% of cases are undiagnosed, according to the National Sleep Foundation.

The study examined whether retatrutide, an investigational weight-loss drug from Eli Lilly, could help treat OSA in adults who were overweight or obese.

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Retatrutide is being evaluated in phase 3 TRIUMPH trials as a potential treatment for obesity and related metabolic conditions. The drug has not been approved by the FDA.

The FDA has warned that unauthorized versions of retatrutide have been illegally marketed and sold online for weight loss.

The two phase 3 randomized trials included 691 adults with moderate-to-severe sleep apnea and a BMI of at least 27. Participants received once-weekly injections of retatrutide at doses of 4, 9 or 12 milligrams, or a placebo, and were followed for 80 weeks.

The trials included 243 participants without type 2 diabetes and 448 with the condition.

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Participants who received retatrutide lost between 12% and nearly 20% of their body weight and experienced significantly fewer breathing interruptions than those who received a placebo.

About 68% of participants experienced more than a 50% improvement in OSA symptoms, regardless of whether they had type 2 diabetes.

The study also found that hypoxic burden — the severity and duration of low-oxygen episodes caused by breathing disruptions during sleep — fell by about 75% among participants without type 2 diabetes and 65% among those with the condition.

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The researchers concluded that retatrutide led to significantly greater reductions in AHI (breathing interruptions) than a placebo among adults with OSA who were obese or overweight, regardless of whether they had type 2 diabetes.

The researchers noted that retatrutide’s lack of FDA approval was a limitation, and further studies are needed to determine how the drug may affect long-term cardiovascular outcomes.

Study co-author Dr. Virend Somers, a cardiologist and professor of medicine at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, told Fox News Digital that while the results were expected, he was surprised by the "magnitude of benefit in patients with type 2 diabetes," as well as the significant reduction in sleep apnea.

"This is a very exciting time in treating sleep apnea patients," Somers said.

Sleep apnea is associated with a higher risk of heart attacks, strokes, high blood pressure and atrial fibrillation. In the trial, participants experienced reductions in several cardiovascular risk factors, including systolic blood pressure, LDL cholesterol, systemic inflammation and neck circumference.

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"A reduction in these measures would predict whether these patients were at increased cardiovascular risk," Somers told Fox News Digital.

"In diabetics, blood pressure is a key determinant of future cardiovascular risk, and the fact that we were able to reduce it so significantly was both surprising and exciting."

Somers said retatrutide also improved several diabetes-related measures.

In participants without diabetes, insulin levels fell by more than 50%. Among those with type 2 diabetes, 40% progressed from diabetes to prediabetes and another 40% no longer met the criteria for diabetes, according to the researcher.

The improvements were largely linked to weight loss, which can lead to better sleep and reduced sleep-related impairment, he said.

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"[The participants] reported much improved sleep beyond just the sleep apnea — what we call sleep-related impairment was significantly reduced," Somers said.

The study included participants who were using CPAP and those who were not. Somers said CPAP use generally declined during the study, suggesting that some patients may eventually require less device-based treatment.

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Dr. Wendy Troxel, a RAND senior behavioral scientist in Utah who was not involved in the study, noted that OSA is often under-diagnosed and under-treated, especially among postmenopausal women.

"Although CPAP remains the frontline treatment for sleep apnea, my hope is that greater awareness of treatment options may encourage more people to get screened and seek treatment," she told Fox News Digital.

Somers noted that the condition completely resolved in about 25% of participants without diabetes and 15% of those with type 2 diabetes.

The study’s findings do not mean patients should stop using CPAP or other prescribed treatments, the researchers emphasized. Additional research is needed to determine retatrutide's long-term safety and effectiveness for sleep apnea.

"There’s hope on the horizon," Somers said. "We have the CPAP, we have mandibular devices, we have postural therapy, where you try to avoid sleeping on your back, and now we’ve got drug therapies that can potentially not just reduce your apnea, but also make you sleep better ... and reduce the risk of future cardiovascular events."

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Simple exercise done just once a week could help lower blood pressure

Holding a wall squat for a few minutes might not feel like an intense workout, but a growing body of evidence suggests it could be one of the most effective ways to lower your blood pressure.

A trial published in BMJ Open Sport & Exercise Medicine found that isometric exercise training, where muscles contract without moving the joints, leads to meaningful drops in resting blood pressure within just four weeks.

Researchers also found that daily exercise may not be necessary to maintain these benefits, as exercising just once a week was enough to preserve some heart-health improvements.

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The study followed 100 inactive adults with normal to high-normal blood pressure, defined as a systolic reading between 120 and 140 millimeters of mercury.

For the first four weeks, the participants performed lower-body isometric wall squats three times a week at home. The routine consisted of four two-minute sessions separated by two minutes of seated rest, monitored using heart-rate straps to ensure consistent effort.

After four weeks, participants’ top blood pressure number (systolic pressure) fell by about 9.5 points on average, while their bottom number (diastolic pressure) also dropped compared with the control group.

Researchers then examined the effects of reduced exercise frequency. During the following four weeks, participants were randomly assigned to train three, two, one or zero times per week.

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Those who stopped exercising completely saw their blood pressure bounce back to baseline within four weeks, essentially wiping out their progress.

In contrast, participants who kept training just once or twice a week managed to hold onto a significant portion of their blood pressure reductions.

Only the group that continued training three times weekly retained key improvements in the following metrics.

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"This is a fascinating study revealing just a little bit of the right exercise even once a week has likely demonstrable cardiovascular benefits in terms of blood pressure reduction," Dr. Aseem Malhotra, a cardiologist and metabolic health specialist at Ovadia Heart Health in Florida, told Fox News Digital.

"It also doesn’t cost anything to do wall squats at home."

Malhotra, who was not involved in the study, noted that physical movement is only one piece of the puzzle.

"In my own personal clinical practice, I regularly see significant improvements in blood pressure with many patients coming off medication just from dietary change alone," he said.

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"A low-carb Mediterranean diet is, in my view, the most substantial and effective intervention – not just for blood pressure, but for all metabolic health markers."

The study cohort was relatively modest in size, consisting of 100 generally healthy, non-smoking adults who were not taking blood pressure medications.

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The findings cannot automatically be generalized to individuals with diagnosed hypertension, older populations with mobility limitations, or patients who are already on heart medications, the researchers acknowledged.

Additionally, because the maintenance phase lasted only four weeks, the researchers noted that longer-term trials are needed to see whether a once-weekly session can sustain blood pressure reductions over months or years.

Because the study involved physical activity, participants and researchers knew each person’s assigned exercise group.

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Blood sugar spikes may be tied to everyday habits you can control, expert says

Everyday habits — from what you eat for breakfast to how much you sleep — can have a significant impact on blood sugar levels, according to a metabolic health expert.

Maintaining healthy blood sugar levels is essential for energy, organ function and overall metabolic health, while frequent or prolonged spikes and drops can contribute to health complications.

Jim LaValle, a Texas-based clinical pharmacist and metabolic medicine expert, told Fox News Digital that understanding how food, exercise, sleep and stress affect blood sugar is key to keeping levels in check.

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LaValle recommends monitoring blood sugar after meals, known as postprandial glucose, to better understand how different foods, beverages and eating habits affect blood sugar levels.

"Do I spike more from eating rice, or do I spike from eating quinoa? How much can I eat?" he said. "I think that's a foundational issue."

The metabolic health expert noted that insulin resistance occurs when cells become less responsive to insulin, a process that can be influenced by inflammation in the body.

Normally, insulin helps move glucose from the bloodstream into muscle cells, where it can be stored as glycogen for later use.

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LaValle said he’s a "big believer" in eating a higher-protein breakfast rather than one that’s heavy in carbs, pointing to naturally elevated cortisol levels in the morning and their potential impact on blood sugar.

"You've got to watch how many sugars are in food, how many refined carbohydrates you're [eating]," he added.

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One of the simplest lifestyle habits to help lower blood sugar, according to LaValle, is taking a 10-minute walk after eating. Regular exercise is an "obvious" healthy practice, he added, although he acknowledged that it's not easy for everyone.

"It’s easy to say, ‘eat better, exercise, sleep better,’ but then people are working 16-hour days or are single parents, they get home, they open up their pantry and destroy a bag of cookies because that's the first thing they can eat and their blood sugar’s plummeted," he said.

Even a little movement after eating can be beneficial, LaValle said, particularly in a modern world that’s "eliminating the need to move."

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LaValle also emphasized the importance of managing stress, which can contribute to insulin resistance.

Along with healthy eating, exercise and stress management, getting adequate sleep is "huge for glucose regulation," he added.

"When you don't sleep and you don’t get enough rest to reset your body for the next day ... all those hormones that are supposed to be getting released get skewed," LaValle said, noting that insulin regulation is particularly affected by inadequate sleep.

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LaValle noted that sleep apnea is often associated with conditions such as diabetes, prediabetes, high blood pressure and obesity, emphasizing the importance of healthy sleep habits.

Hyperarousal of the brain can contribute to insomnia, LaValle added.

For someone who’s "jacked up all day long," feeling overcommitted and anxious, that heightened state of stress can disrupt sleep and, in turn, interfere with glucose regulation.

Inadequate sleep can also affect appetite and eating behaviors, potentially making blood sugar management more difficult.

"Then you're going to start to put weight on and then, when you don't get enough sleep, you’ve got to eat more to fuel your brain," LaValle cautioned.

"So you eat more, you're not efficient at packaging that fuel up, you're moving less ... and those are the things that you have control over."

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New test could flag which men need aggressive prostate cancer treatment and which don't

A new diagnostic test could improve the prostate cancer experience for millions of men.

Researchers at University College London (UCL) analyzed a tissue-based molecular test called Decipher to determine which men with high-risk prostate cancer were most likely to benefit from stronger treatment — and which might avoid unnecessary medication and side effects.

The analysis focused on abiraterone, a hormone therapy that was shown in the STAMPEDE clinical trial to cut the risk of death in half among men with high-risk, localized prostate cancer.

The findings were presented at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Congress 2026 in Madrid, held Oct. 23–27.

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Not every cancer is alike, and treating someone more aggressively than necessary could have "increased side effects and poorer quality of life," noted a UCL news release.

Because prostate cancers differ at the molecular level, not every patient benefits from adding hormone therapy.

To determine whether Decipher could help guide that decision, researchers examined test scores from more than 27,000 patients in real-world data and 401 men with non-metastatic prostate cancer who had participated in the STAMPEDE abiraterone trial.

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Higher Decipher scores predicted worse outcomes, meaning the cancer is more likely to spread and additional treatment may be valuable. A low Decipher score suggested more intensive treatment may be unnecessary.

Lead researcher Dr. Sarah Howlett of UCL Cancer Institute commented in a statement that for men with very high-risk prostate cancer, preventing spread of the disease is "critical."

"Understanding who benefits most from additional treatment can make a meaningful difference," she added.

The findings suggest that genomic testing could help tailor treatment, according to the researcher.

Men with high-risk prostate cancer and low Decipher scores may face a lower risk of spread and could avoid more intensive therapy, while those with high scores may be the strongest candidates for additional treatment.

Identifying the same pattern in both a large, real-world dataset and a randomized clinical trial strengthens the findings, Howlett noted.

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"But further validation in other datasets is needed before the test is used routinely to make these decisions," she said.

Elai Davicioni, medical director of urology for Decipher test maker Veracyte, also commented, "We believe this growing evidence gives physicians a stronger reason to use Decipher before making decisions that can affect both cancer outcomes and patients’ quality of life."

Fox News senior medical analyst Dr. Marc Siegel, who was not involved in the study, also commented on the findings.

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"Prostate cancer varies from person to person," he said. "Medical science is increasingly aware that it is not one size fits all."

Localized prostate cancer, which has not yet spread, may contain mutations that predict how aggressive the disease will be and indicate whether it could respond to targeted therapies, Siegel noted.

Certain targeted therapies are being used more with widespread prostate cancer, according to the doctor, as they include "more powerful anti-androgens, which works not just on the testes, but on the adrenals as well."

Hormone therapies have "significant side effects," including fatigue, and "don’t always help," he added.

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Siegel said the study’s strength was its combination of a randomized treatment group with Decipher testing, which helped identify in advance which patients were most likely to respond to intensive hormone therapy.

"This is the personalized, precise approach of the near future," he said.

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Prostate cancer is the second-leading cause of cancer death behind lung cancer, according to the American Cancer Society.

About one in eight American men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetime.

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People living past 100 in one tiny village share 3 daily habits

National Geographic researchers believe they may have discovered a new "blue zone."

A blue zone is a geographic region where residents show unusually high rates of longevity and survival into old age. The newest blue zone candidate is a small village called Bolotana, located on the Italian island of Sardinia.

In a 2024 snapshot, 10 of the village's 2,262 residents were at least 100 years old, according to National Geographic — roughly 10 times the Sardinian average and 11 times the U.S. average.

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A team of researchers, including Dan Buettner — founder of Blue Zones, a company focused on longevity, and a National Geographic Fellow — set out to investigate Bolotana’s exceptional lifespan.

The findings were published in Frontiers in Aging.

Buettner highlighted three lifestyle habits that are common among Bolotana’s long-lived residents.

The study did not establish that these habits directly cause longevity, but researchers are examining how the village’s environment and traditions may contribute to its unusually high survival rates.

"The international team of demographers, their population scientists … were able to examine the birth records, death records and baptismal records and see that this is probably the richest, most complete data on centenarians in the world," Buettner told Fox News Digital.

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"For those of us who want to make it into our 90s and 100s in full health, this place does it better than anyplace else in the world."

The strongest longevity advantage appeared among Bolotana’s women, who ranked second only to Hong Kong for life expectancy at age 70 and survival from age 70 to 100.

The original Sardinian blue zone was identified in the late 1990s and formally described in research published around 2000. Located in the mountainous region roughly 68 miles from Bolotana, it is known for unusually strong male longevity, according to Buettner.

Although Bolotana remains partly pastoral, it is also an agricultural community. Buettner suggested that this may mean men spend more time at home helping with household responsibilities, potentially reducing the burden on women.

"In the original blue zone in the highlands, the [women] worried about the finances and raising children and the leaky roof," he said. "They're all alone. Here, men are participating more, and that could explain why women are doing better, because they're only bearing half the stress load instead of almost all of it."

Buettner believes the village’s strong social connections may be one factor behind the women’s longevity, although the study did not establish a cause.

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"We see women gathering in the library, baking bread together, making sweets together and going to church together," he said. "So, you see a much more socially connected society among the women in Bolotana than in the other blue zones."

As in many parts of Italy, Bolotana has a strong Catholic tradition. Buettner said church attendance may provide residents with faith, social connection and a sense of belonging.

"It’s a sense of community, but it's also people proactively understanding that sitting down with a friend and talking about your troubles and your day with somebody who cares about you is a much more powerful drug than a pharmaceutical," Buettner said.

"The human species has shown this over and over, and Bolotana is a perfect example."

Diet varies among blue zones, but Bolotana’s traditional fare is largely plant-based, with a focus on beans, vegetables, wheat, olives and olive oil, along with some cheese and meat.

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"About 90% of a centenarian's diet has been all plant-based," Buettner said. "Not protein, by the way. These aren't protein loaders. These are complex carbohydrate loaders."

A Bolotanese breakfast might consist of a piece of bread or cheese with local olives and a cup of coffee. Lunch, the biggest meal of the day that starts in the early afternoon, is "almost always" a minestrone soup made with locally grown seasonal vegetables and lots of beans.

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"Beans are the cornerstone of the longevity diet here," Buettner said. "Garbanzo beans, lentil beans, pinto beans, cannellini beans — these are really the all-star of the diet."

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Traditionally, residents ate meat about five times per month, usually as a celebratory food.

In the highlands, people traditionally cooked with lard, Buettner said, while Bolotana residents use olive oil from ancient trees.

Researchers are studying whether the oil’s unusually high levels of odd-chain fatty acids could be relevant to longevity.

Bolotana residents are not deliberately pursuing longer lives, the longevity researcher noted. The region has little emphasis on gym culture or biohacking.

"These are real humans with an average set of genes," Buettner said. "These aren’t superhumans with superhuman discipline or better genes."

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"They’re not chasing longevity," he added. "It is the product of their environment."

Because Bolotana’s streets are steep and residents rarely drive within town, they typically walk to shops, cafés, workplaces and friends’ homes, Buettner said.

"It’s this sort of unconscious walking that’s far more important for longevity than going to the gym."

Buettner said Bolotana is an example of how daily routines and surroundings can encourage movement without requiring residents to schedule formal exercise.

Residents of walkable American communities have a three- to five-year life-expectancy advantage over those in less-walkable areas, he said.

"If we want a healthier America, we have to start thinking about shaping our neighborhoods and our cities so people can unconsciously move and not rely on heaping another obligation on their busy lives to remember to go to the gym," the expert said.

"Most of the things that lead to Bolotana longevity are also pleasant and make the journey a joy," he added.

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Selena Gomez's vaping admission highlights hidden health risks doctors say millions face daily

When Selena Gomez revealed to her millions of followers that heavy nicotine vaping had noticeably altered her voice, calling the habit "stupid," her confession highlighted a larger issue with the practice.

For the singer and actress, the physical toll manifested in her vocal cords. But medical professionals emphasize that her experience is only a visible symptom of a deeper health crisis affecting millions of Americans who use e-cigarettes every day.

While often marketed as a safer alternative to conventional cigarettes, e-cigarettes pose significant health risks. Aside from the immediate vocal strain and airway inflammation noted by otolaryngologists, major health institutions warn that regular vaping exposes the body to a cocktail of toxic chemicals, cardiovascular strain and respiratory risks.

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Specialists emphasize that e-cigarettes deliver more concentrated doses of nicotine than traditional cigarettes, rapidly driving chemical dependency in the brain.

"With e-cigarettes and vaping, you can get a very high dose of nicotine, and that directly correlates to addiction and how difficult it can be to break these patterns," Trent Carter, a nurse practitioner and CEO of Renew Health in New Mexico, previously told Fox News Digital.

Carter notes that high nicotine intake without traditional smoke can carry its own health consequences.

"It can lead to sleep disturbances, increased anxiety, and if you have underlying cardiac problems or high blood pressure, it’s going to raise your heart rate and elevate your blood pressure, leading to all sorts of issues."

According to the American Lung Association, the aerosol produced by e-cigarettes contains fine chemical particles, heavy metals such as nickel and lead, and organic compounds. Over time, inhaling these irritants can trigger chronic airway inflammation, irreversible lung tissue scarring, and obstructive pulmonary conditions.

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A major concern among physicians is the chemical composition of e-liquids. Even nicotine-free formulas contain flavorings and solvent agents like propylene glycol and vegetable glycerin.

When heated by the device’s coil, these liquids break down into toxic compounds, including formaldehyde and acrolein, both known to damage cellular structures in the respiratory system.

Doctors stress that because modern e-cigarettes have only been widely used for a little over a decade, long-term health consequences are still unclear. While immediate effects may appear as hoarseness, coughing, or reduced athletic endurance, the larger impact poses risks to long-term vital organ function.

For many attempting to quit vaping, traditional tools like nicotine patches or gum can fall short because they don't address the psychological habit.

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"While a patch or gum can help with physical cravings, if you aren't addressing the behavioral aspect, you're missing a huge component," Carter said.

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"Vaping can become constant throughout the day. Subconsciously, you might not even realize how frequently you're doing it, or that you're using it to cope with underlying anxiety or lack of sleep."

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For those inspired by Gomez, health professionals urge people to seek comprehensive support rather than simply switch nicotine delivery methods.

"The goal shouldn't be to find another way to consume nicotine, it should be to treat the dependence itself," said Carter.

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