What happens to your body when you quit smoking, the best foods to help you lose weight, and more health news

Giving up cigarettes can be excruciating, with cravings and withdrawal symptoms lingering for weeks, especially if you aren’t strongly motivated.

Yet, just minutes after that first smoke-free breath, your body starts to change for the better. And with all the healthy breaths you take in the weeks and months that follow, the benefits only multiply.

The health benefits of quitting smoking is the first and biggest reason to quit, according to the American Lung Association (ALA).

“Even persons who have smoked for many years or who have smoked heavily can realize health and financial benefits from quitting smoking,” Dr. Robert Redfield, then director of the U.S. Centers of Disease Control and Prevention.

Two major pharmacy chains, CVS and Walgreens, plan to offer abortion pills in states that do not have restrictions that would prevent dispensing the medications.

This likely won’t increase access in states that have made abortion illegal since a June decision by the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling.

The move by the pharmacy chains comes in response to a U.S. Food and Drug Administration rule change this week allowing pharmacies to become certified to dispense mifepristone directly to someone with a prescription, CNN reported.

CVS said in a statement, “We plan to seek certification to dispense mifepristone where legally permissible.”

Following the deaths of 15 infants, families are advised to immediately stop using all models of Kids2 Rocking Sleepers, according to a second recall notice.

Four of those 15 babies died after the first recall notice, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) reported.

The company is recalling 694,000 Rocking Sleepers. Parents can contact the Kids2 company for a refund.

The CPSC says the deaths occurred after the infants rolled from their back to their stomach or side while unrestrained or under other circumstances. However, in some of the reports, Kids2 has been unable to confirm exactly what happened or that the product was a Rocking Sleeper, according to the company.

When it comes to losing weight, certain foods have a reputation for being all-stars, providing for a body’s nutritional needs while helping keep a person fuller for longer.

“You’re looking at plant foods,” said Connie Diekman, a nationally known food and nutrition consultant and former president of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. “You’re looking at whole grains, vegetables, fruit, beans, nuts, seeds.”

Though certain diets or special eating plans may limit some of these foods, a healthy diet can include all of them, with an eye toward portion size.

Here are some foods to eat to lose weight:

A new study on pigs shows promise for repairing penile injuries in humans.

Scientists in China developed a synthetic tissue that reportedly repairs injuries and restores normal erectile function in pigs. This artificial tunica albuginea (ATA) mimics a fibrous sheath of tissue that is necessary to maintain erections.

“We noticed that this is an area that has received little attention, yet the related need is huge,” said study co-author Xuetao Shi, a researcher at the South China University of Technology in Guangzhou.

The researchers estimate that about half of men between the ages of 40 and 70 have some form of erectile dysfunction.

Singing may help stroke patients regain communication skills, according to new research.

About 40% of stroke survivors have aphasia, a difficulty to deliver or comprehend spoken or written language. That impairment is ongoing for about half of those patients a year after their stroke, potentially affecting quality of life or leading to social isolation.

Researchers in Finland studied a singing-based group rehabilitation program.

“Our study utilized a wide variety of singing elements, such as choral singing, melodic intonation therapy and tablet-assisted singing training,” said study co-author Anni Pitkäniemi, a doctoral researcher at the University of Helsinki. She spoke in a university news release.

Older women who don’t stick to a set sleep and wake schedule may be more likely to struggle with feelings of depression and anxiety — even if they get a normal amount of zzzs.

What’s more, a postmenopausal woman who goes to bed very early and wakes up very early (an “early bird”) or goes to bed late and wakes up later (a “night owl”) is 70% more likely to experience significant depressive symptoms — even with a normal amount of sleep, a new study suggests.

The study wasn’t designed to say whether sleep is the chicken, the egg, or both when it comes to mood. “It could definitely be the case that the women in our study who had depressive symptoms had a different type of sleep schedule because they were depressed, or that their depression was causing them to have more irregular sleep-wake patterns,” said study co-author Leslie Swanson. She is an associate professor of psychiatry at the University of Michigan, in Ann Arbor.