The Checkup: Heavy Drinking Linked to Higher Stroke Risk

• It’s the week of the drinking studies, I guess. Yesterday I told you about research that may have found a way to help you drink less; today’s news may nudge you to give it a try. A new study found that heavy drinkers—defined as those who guzzle three or more alcoholic drinks a day—face a much higher risk for a dangerous kind of stroke called intracerebral hemorrhage, caused by bleeding in the brain. What’s more, they’re also more likely to have stroke at a younger age than nondrinkers—age 60, as opposed to 74—and the strokes of heavy drinkers occur deeper in the brain. The Los Angeles Times reports: “Heavy drinking has been identified as a risk factor for this kind of stroke in the past, but studies have not teased out the differences between patients who suffer bleeding in different parts of the brain, the team concluded—suggesting that in the future, they should.”

• Eeep. More not-so-great news. A new study ties marijuana use testicular cancer. However, as Reuters notes, “The research isn’t ironclad proof that the marijuana is to blame, and even if it is, the danger isn’t overwhelming.”

• Rejoice, sleep-deprived moms and dads: You can totally let your kids cry for while when you put them down to sleep and it probably won’t scar them for life, according to one study. Woo!