This Just In

A roundup of new and noteworthy insights from the week’s most talked-about studies:

1 DOG OWNERS WALK MORE

A study of adults over age 65 in BMC Public Health found that those who owned a dog took an average of 2,760 more steps than those who didn’t, which amounted to 22 more minutes of moderate exercise per day.

2 THERE MAY BE A WAY TO TAN WITHOUT SUN

Researchers wrote in Cell Reports about discovering that they could activate a gene linked to tanning using an agent that darkened skin cells just like the sun–but without any negative UV exposure.

3 RED ONIONS MAY BE BETTER CANCER FIGHTERS THAN WHITE ONIONS

A study in Food Research International found that the amount of cancer cells that died after exposure to Ontario grown red-onion extract was three to four times as great as the amount of cancer cells that died after exposure to extracts of lighter-colored onions.

–Julia Zorthian