Social media hype about the vagus nerve tends to be oversimplified. The truth is more complex — and more interesting.

In some cases, a pinched nerve in the upper back can cause chest pain. However, upper back pinched nerves are less common than those that occur in the neck or lower back. Pinched nerves can cause pain ...

The original version of this story appeared in Quanta Magazine. It is late at night. You are alone and wandering empty streets in search of your parked car when you hear footsteps creeping up from ...

What do chronic migraines, back pain, and irritable bowel syndrome have in common? These seemingly unrelated conditions share a common underlying problem—sensitization of the nervous system. When I ...

If your body is a performance center, then your nervous system is the invisible stage manager. It keeps your body running in ...

The vagus nerve sprawls from the brain through the body, innervating our organs and managing life support and emotion. Sally Caulwell for Quanta Magazine The original version of this story appeared in ...

Obesity does not just enlarge fat stores, it appears to rework the body’s wiring and immune landscape in ways scientists have struggled to see. Now, whole-body mouse maps point to damaged facial ...

On social media and in wellbeing circles, people have been talking about the vagus nerve a lot. In fact, we have two vagus nerves – a left and a right – and their optimal functioning is essential for ...