Nathan Jeffay

Nathan Jeffay is The Times of Israel's health and science correspondent

Illustration (Evgeny Gromov; iStock by Getty Images)

February 2, 2023, 10:45 pm

Scientists ‘can tell from a brain’s response’ whether owner is left- or right-wing

Israeli study says political differences don’t just emerge when it comes to how we interpret reality around us; our brains actually ‘see’ different things depending on our politics

By Nathan Jeffay

Illustrative: An elderly man sits next to a soda-vending machine selling Coca-Cola in the Old City of Jerusalem. (Yossi Zamir/Flash 90)

February 2, 2023, 4:30 pm

Nixing sugar tax, Israeli government dealt ‘grievous blow to health’ – world experts

Responding to abolition of tariff on sweetened soft drinks, global scholars also argue move ‘seriously tarnishes Israel’s international standing’ in medical community

By Nathan Jeffay

Yoav Ben-Tzur, acting health minister (right), with Aryeh Deri at the Ministry of Social Affairs, Jerusalem, on January 1, 2023. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

January 31, 2023, 3:25 pm

Week after his appointment, acting health minister hasn’t shown up for work – report

Yoav Ben-Tzur, a temporary appointment after Shas head Aryeh Deri was fired on High Court orders, hasn’t even been briefed by ministry officials

By Nathan Jeffay

Illustrative: A nurse cleaning a wound on a patient (Serhii Hryshchyshen via iStock by Getty Images)

January 31, 2023, 12:45 pm

Autism intensifies experience of pain, Israeli study finds, challenging assumptions

Largest study on pain responses may affect medical treatment by making doctors and nurses aware that patients with autism may be hurting more than others, but don’t communicate it

By Nathan Jeffay

A magnified image of the new 'nano needles' invented by scientists at Ben Gurion University in a bid to overcome antibotic resistance. (Courtesy/Ariel Kushmaro)

January 27, 2023, 11:18 am

Israeli find shown to combat antibiotic resistance by ‘pricking bacteria to death’

Ben Gurion University scientists develop substance containing ‘nano needles’ that lab tests indicate can overpower 90% of superbugs by physically destroying the pathogen

By Nathan Jeffay

File: A nurse prepares a vaccine at Rabin Square in Tel Aviv, December 31, 2020. (Miriam Alster/Flash90)

January 27, 2023, 1:39 am

FDA adviser: Israel’s fast actions, big data, gave US a ‘window to future of COVID’

Acting chair of FDA vaccine advisory committee hopes Israel’s stellar performance in COVID research will persist in other topics and have ‘continuing effect’ on US health policy

By Nathan Jeffay

IsraAid CEO Yotam Polizer aids a Syrian refugee in Lesbos, Greece, in 2015 (courtesy of IsraAid)

January 25, 2023, 7:42 pm

Activist who took Israeli disaster aid global wins humanitarian prize

Yotam Polizer heads IsraAid, NGO with 320 staff that provides help at disasters worldwide, will receive prestigious Charles Bronfman Prize

By Nathan Jeffay

An Israeli woman receives her fourth dose of the coronavirus vaccine in a private nursing home in Petah Tikva, Israel, Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

January 25, 2023, 1:53 pm

Israelis should get annual COVID shots when virus cases low, vaccine panel advises

Top epidemiologist hails decision as wise move to deal with coronavirus as part of ‘new normal,’ but critic says case for regular population-wide vaccination not compelling

By Nathan Jeffay

A woman undergoing a dental checkup (shironosov via iStock by Getty Images)

January 24, 2023, 11:10 am

Tooth decay more widespread among obese and underweight, huge Israeli study finds

Researchers say study based on 66,790 soldiers should prompt vigilance, shape policy; low or high BMI can be tied to socioeconomic status, which may also impact dental health

By Nathan Jeffay

File - illustrative image of the human brain. ALS, a degenerative disease, is caused by by motor neuron death in the brain and spinal cord. (Ozgu Arslan via stock by Getty Images)

January 20, 2023, 10:51 am

New ALS drug headed to Israel, in first distribution deal outside North America

Medicine is believed to extend patients’ lives by almost a year on average; FDA has approved it based on Phase II trial

By Nathan Jeffay

The new Tel Aviv University robot, with smell capabilities that use a locust's antenna (YouTube screen grab/Tel Aviv University)

January 18, 2023, 2:59 pm

Israeli robot fitted with locust antenna gains scent superpowers

Dog gone? Insect parts are so powerful they could one day replace sniffer dogs and even high-resolution cameras, Tel Aviv scientists predict

By Nathan Jeffay

A medical clown from Dream Doctors, an Israeli nonprofit that was observed in new peer-reviewed research on medical clowning (courtesy of Dream Doctors)

January 17, 2023, 5:41 pm

Science of silliness: Israeli study deconstructs medical clowning so MDs use it more

Research is first to empirically map clowns’ skills, authors say, claiming it will help doctors understand their work and better integrate it into treatment

By Nathan Jeffay

File: Illustration of a breast cancer cell (Christoph Burgstedt via iStock by Getty Images)

January 17, 2023, 1:03 pm

Israeli scientists say substance prevents cancer’s spread in mice with 90% success

On warpath against secondary tumors, scientists believe they’ve found a way to stop cancer cells from entering blood, moving around the body; but solution not yet in medicine form

By Nathan Jeffay

Dr. Mattan Arazi, ophthalmology resident at Sheba medical Center, consulting with a child in Nigeria as part of a humanitarian mission on January 10, 2023. (Courtesy: Sheba Medical Center)

January 13, 2023, 2:11 pm

Battling kids’ eye cancer in Nigeria, Israeli doctors introduce pinpointed chemo

Week-long mission from Sheba Medical Center aims to teach local doctors to perform the complex procedure that spares patients the side effects of full body radiation

By Nathan Jeffay

An illustration showing four modular enzyme fragments (highlighted) that Weizmann Institute’s CADENZ method can combine to generate active enzymes at unprecedented scale. (Weizmann Institute of Science)

January 12, 2023, 9:08 pm

Israeli researchers able to build enzymes ‘like Lego,’ in potential boon for drugs

Bold new technique at Weizmann Institute generates new enzymes with unprecedented scale, in possible boost to both chemical industry and development of medical treatments

By Nathan Jeffay